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**12Cickprior** · 07-28-2006, 08:00 AM

Hey y'all,

A little bit of reality here guys ...
First, Secrets of the Samurai is a very dangerous book. Ratti and Westbrook assembled everything they could find in English to create that volume with no research to determine the truth or validity of its contents. Many good things are in there, but there are also countless mistakes. Unless you've done enough personal research to know which is which, I would advise not trusting anything you read out of there.

Second, when you say Samurai, you are encompassing an era that is about a thousand years long. The samurai began as a distinct social class starting around 800 or 900, and wasn't abolished until the end of the 1800's. During that time, various clans were consolidated into fiefdoms and then the entire country was consolidated after a hundred years of near constant war. Those that were thought of as samurai changed greatly according to what time they lived in, and also what clan they were born to. An Edo samurai of the early 1800's would be an extremely different animal from a Nara samurai of the 1000's. Those that we commonly romanticize as "Samurai" with all of their ideals, were in actuality only in existence for a short period of that time frame (late 1000's to mid 1100's).

Lastly, no matter what time period they were born into, a samurai would learn what he was told to. This was dependent upon the Daimyo that he served and the family he was born into. It's much like asking what a person in the United States is expected to learn today. The answer would be reading, writing, and arithmetic. Of course, everyone's proficieny in those skills would be different, and many, many other things can and will be learned depending upon ability, social status, and desire. The samurai were all expected to know horsemanship, archery, and swordsmanship. However, just like today, their profiency in these things varied widely, and there was a plethora of other arts that could be learned depending upon a multitude of influences.

This is how I've come to understand things. Others opinions may vary.

Cheers,

07-28-2006, 08:00 AM	#11
12Cickprior Join Date Oct 2005 Posts 534 Senior Member	Hey y'all, A little bit of reality here guys ... First, Secrets of the Samurai is a very dangerous book. Ratti and Westbrook assembled everything they could find in English to create that volume with no research to determine the truth or validity of its contents. Many good things are in there, but there are also countless mistakes. Unless you've done enough personal research to know which is which, I would advise not trusting anything you read out of there. Second, when you say Samurai, you are encompassing an era that is about a thousand years long. The samurai began as a distinct social class starting around 800 or 900, and wasn't abolished until the end of the 1800's. During that time, various clans were consolidated into fiefdoms and then the entire country was consolidated after a hundred years of near constant war. Those that were thought of as samurai changed greatly according to what time they lived in, and also what clan they were born to. An Edo samurai of the early 1800's would be an extremely different animal from a Nara samurai of the 1000's. Those that we commonly romanticize as "Samurai" with all of their ideals, were in actuality only in existence for a short period of that time frame (late 1000's to mid 1100's). Lastly, no matter what time period they were born into, a samurai would learn what he was told to. This was dependent upon the Daimyo that he served and the family he was born into. It's much like asking what a person in the United States is expected to learn today. The answer would be reading, writing, and arithmetic. Of course, everyone's proficieny in those skills would be different, and many, many other things can and will be learned depending upon ability, social status, and desire. The samurai were all expected to know horsemanship, archery, and swordsmanship. However, just like today, their profiency in these things varied widely, and there was a plethora of other arts that could be learned depending upon a multitude of influences. This is how I've come to understand things. Others opinions may vary. Cheers,
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